Gulf of Mexico Fishing Report: Snook, Reds, and Offshore Riches

Good morning fishin’ folks, Artificial Lure here with your Friday, August 8th, 2025, Gulf of Mexico Florida fishing report—putting you on the bite from Destin all the way down to St. Pete Beach.

Let’s start with **tides and weather**. We’re looking at a good mix today with a tidal coefficient rising from 59 this morning to 70 by sunset—pretty average, meaning steady water movement and a healthy push of bait up and down the coast. Saint Pete Beach sees the high tide hit at 12:14 PM with a bigger swing of 2.55 feet and a lower low of -0.1 feet around 8:45 PM, so plan your inshore missions to work those moving waters. Your sunrise was 6:57 AM and you’ve got daylight running right on through to a beautiful 8:14 PM.

Weather’s classic Florida summer: early morning winds out of the northeast at 5 to 10 knots, seas mostly flat, with a light chop inshore. Expect a shot of scattered showers and thunderstorms—most often popping up in the late morning or into the afternoon. Not a bad deal, just keep an eye on that sky and have a raincoat handy. The National Weather Service is calling for decently stable conditions, with continued chances of rain as a tropical wave drifts north, but nothing to keep you off the water for too long.

Now, the **fishing action** has been downright hot for both inshore and offshore. This week’s charters out of Tarpon Springs and down the coast are slamming the snook and redfish under the mangroves. Live, free-lined scaled sardines remain the key ticket—snook and reds can’t resist them, especially at first light or just at dusk. Mangrove snapper are thick around dock lights at night and structure during the day—shrimp-tipped jigs or small pinfish will fill your cooler. Spanish mackerel and trout are still cruising the grass flats, especially as the tide moves. For trout, toss a white or chartreuse soft plastic on a 1/8-ounce jighead. Mackerel just can’t lay off a flashy spoon, so rip those through moving bait pods for a quick limit, especially near Clearwater and St. Pete Beach piers.

Offshore, it’s what summer is all about—big snapper, grouper, and even a few mahi in the mix. Captain Experiences’ recent reports say deeper drops are producing solid red and gag grouper, mangrove snapper, plus a few cobia running close to bait schools. Out of Pensacola and Destin, charters are running out to 80-120 feet and coming back with nice hauls of amberjack and red grouper. For bottom fish, dead sardines, squid and big live pinfish are your best baits. Drop ‘em down on a heavy knocker rig and hang on tight.

For **lures**, nothing beats a white bucktail or a DOA jerk shad when the water’s clean. Topwater plugs at sunrise around grass edges—think Heddon Spook Jr or MirrOLure Poppa Mullet—are producing big blow-ups from both snook and reds. Offshore guys: heavy 6-8 ounce jigs, chartreuse and pink, rigged with big curly tails have been hammering red and gag grouper off ledges and wrecks.

**Hot spots** right now:
- The passes around Clearwater and Dunedin are stacked with feeding fish on the last hour of incoming tide and the first hour of outgoing—fish the bridge pilings or get up in the shade of the docks.
- The nearshore reefs off Destin and Panama City are alive with snapper and grouper, especially early; bring a chumbag and fish deep.
- The mangrove edges and oyster bars from Tarpon Springs south to Tampa Bay are loaded with reds, snook, and a few sneaky flounder—hit it early or late while the water’s moving.

Fishing reports also note a strong showing this week on the offshore party boats—plenty of mixed bags: red snapper, lane snapper, mangroves, porgies, as well as the odd mahi and even a Goliath grouper for those equipped to tangle.

That’s it for today’s roundup—thanks for tuning in to Artificial Lure’s Gulf Gulf fishing report. Don’t forget to subscribe for all the latest updates before you hit the water.